Oyster River

Oyster River Middle School Students Participate in Annual Servicepalooza

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Oyster River Cooperative School District
SAU No. 5
Superintendent James Morse
36 Coe Drive
Durham, NH 03824

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Oyster River Middle School Students Participate in Annual Servicepalooza

Oyster River Middle School students learned from New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Conservation Officer James Benvenuti and his K9 partner, Cora. (Courtesy Photo Oyster River Schools)

DURHAM — Superintendent James Morse and Principal Jay Richard are pleased to announce that Oyster River Middle School hosted its annual Servicepalooza event earlier this month, which enabled students to take part in various community service projects throughout the district.

Students from Oyster River Middle School participated in the school’s annual “Servicepalooza” event on Friday, May 11. Keeping with tradition, they got involved with community service activities in Durham, Lee and Madbury, as well as at Oyster River’s four schools.

Groups of middle school students went to Mast Way and Moharimet Elementary Schools to present to 4th grade classes on what it is like to be a middle school student, as the elementary school students prepare to make the transition to middle school this fall.

Small groups of ORMS students assisted teachers in their classrooms at both elementary schools, while others worked outside to weed, mulch and clean the gardens and courtyard at Mast Way and the playground at Moharimet.

A group of more than a dozen students joined STEM teacher John Silverio and Conservation Officer James Benvenuti — along with his K9 partner, Cora — of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department to release approximately 350 trout fry into the Lamprey River at Wiswall Dam. Silverio had been raising the brook trout in his classroom since January, as he has for past two years.

Students learned about the importance of the fish hatcheries and conservation from Officer Benvenuti, who led small groups of students down the fish ladder to explain the spawning process.

At the high school, students participating in Servicepalooza learned how to paint an exterior structure.

“Servicepalooza is an extraordinary tradition, and it’s something that we all look forward to every year,” Principal Richard said. “I am very proud of all of our students for getting involved and making it a success once again. Their work makes our community better and allows them to broaden their horizons through service.”

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1:1 Initiative Puts Laptops in Hands of Every Oyster River Middle School Student Starting in September

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Oyster River Cooperative School District
SAU No. 5
Superintendent James Morse
36 Coe Drive
Durham, NH 03824

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

1:1 Initiative Puts Laptops in Hands of Every Oyster River Middle School Student Starting in September

DURHAM — It’s with great excitement that Oyster River Middle School Principal Jay Richard and Technology Instructor Nikola Viens share news that the ORCSD School Board recently gave approval and support for all Oyster River Middle School students to each be provided a laptop in the upcoming 2018-2019 school year.

Under a technology initiative beginning this fall, all students will have access to their own school issued laptop. The philosophy behind the initiative is known as the One-to-One (or 1:1) educational technology model and differs from the district’s current model in which students are using a shared cart model for every team of four classrooms.

A group of ORMS teachers presented, on behalf of the middle school technology committee, a proposal for the technology initiative to the school board during the May 2 meeting. The presentation included a brief overview of the One-to-One initiative as well as examples of neighboring districts who have already implemented or are moving toward implementing a similar model in their schools. Each presenting teacher explained ways that a One-to-One technology initiative would satisfy a current need for more devices in the classroom due to an increased demand each year.

“Education and the potential it can reach did not exist as it does now thanks to a lot of the technology advances that have occurred in our society and definitely within public schools. If there is one thing our district does well, and any district can always do better, it’s push kids to their potential,” said ORMS fifth grade teacher Sunpreet Sadana. “The 1:1 initiative eliminates a lot of roadblocks to learning and allows educators and kids to enhance their learning and instruction and push kids to that potential.”

Equal access to technology has been emphasized during many recent board meeting discussions, along with ensuring that all students had the same access to instruction despite their individual needs and abilities. The best way to do that is to ensure that every student is using the same type of technology device in the classroom. Having a single type of device available to all students at ORMS ensures continuity across classrooms and grades at the same time it gives teachers the tools and flexibility they need to offer each student the highest level of instruction.

Fifth grade teacher Sara O’Brien explained how increased technology would affect her classroom when presenting to the board:

“All classrooms will look differently with increased technology,” she said. “When I imagine my classroom with more technology it would not mean more students are behind a screen five days a week, all day. It would mean integrating computers into portions of my lessons instead of having to use them the whole block that I have them. It would mean I would have time to teach my students about how to use a computer, not just ask them to complete assignments.”

The laptop initiative also aligns with the new competency-based approach the Middle School has adopted this school year.

“Competency-based education stresses the mastery of the skills needed for the 21st century and the philosophy embraces the idea that content is ever evolving and changing,” said seventh grade teacher Janet Martel. “At Oyster River, the teachers use new and emerging technologies to teach these skills.”

Information technology staff, ORMS administrators and members of the District Technology Committee will work diligently over the next four months to work out the details of this roll out.

Principal Richard expressed his enthusiasm about the initiative and the positive impact it will have on our teachers and students.

“We have seen published, empirical evidence that 1:1 laptop initiatives improve student performance and increase test scores,” Principal Richard said. “Putting a laptop in the hands of every student at Oyster River Middle School creates a level playing field and further reduces learning gaps for our students, resulting in improved student growth and development from the onset. I am very excited to implement this program, and I want to express my gratitude to our school board and technology staff for bringing the 1:1 initiative to fruition.”

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Oyster River Middle School Advisory Committee Finalizing Facility Study

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Oyster River Cooperative School District
SAU No. 5
Superintendent James Morse
36 Coe Drive
Durham, NH 03824

For Immediate Release

Thursday, May 17, 2018

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Oyster River Middle School Advisory Committee Finalizing Facility Study

DURHAM — Superintendent James Morse reports that members of an advisory committee are finalizing a study of Oyster River Middle School to determine the future of the 83-year-old building.

The middle school, which opened in 1935, is in need of repairs and renovations. In September 2017, Superintendent Morse formed the advisory committee to research and create a short list of options that could be presented to the School Board for review by the end of the 2017-18 school year.

The committee is made up of elected town leaders from Durham, Lee and Madbury, an architect, an engineer, a land developer, community members from all three towns and administrative support staff.

“Committee members have been working tirelessly to determine the best options for the middle school building, which has served the district well for many years,” Superintendent Morse said. “This must be done methodically so that we can find the right solution for our students and community.”

Over the last seven months, the committee has reviewed 13 options and is in the process of narrowing down next steps for the district.

  • Renovate the building for the fourth time. The current middle school was last renovated in 1996 and also underwent renovations in ­­­­­­1954 and 1979. The question before the committee is whether it makes educational and financial sense to renovate the building again.
  • Build new on the current site. The current building has a roof area equivalent to three football fields. If a new building were to be built, it is feasible to do so with a far smaller footprint — as little as one football field.
  • Build new on a new site. The current site is 11.5 acres. If the district were to choose a new site there is potential for a much larger lot that provides more space for fields and less traffic congestion.  A new site also comes with costly site development costs, which could be offset by the sale of the current middle school.
  • Add a new middle school wing to the existing high school. The current middle school would be closed and the property sold.
  • Build a grades six through eight middle school and send grade five back to the elementary schools. This option would require construction at all three schools.
  • Build a seventh and eighth grade middle school and renovate elementary schools to accommodate kindergarten through sixth grade.  This option would require construction at all three schools.
  • Add grades five to eight to each elementary school resulting in Mast Way and Moharimet kindergarten through eighth grade schools. This option would require construction at both elementary schools.
  • Tear down portions of the existing school and replace it with new construction. This option would require temporarily relocating middle school students while construction is ongoing.
  • Build a middle school for grades sixth through eight on a new location and expand elementary schools to grades kindergarten through fifth.  This option would require construction at all three schools.
  • Change the elementary schools so one is grades kindergarten through fourth and the other is grades five through eight. This option would require construction at both elementary schools.
  • Build a new facility for grades kindergarten through eighth grade on a different site and sell the current OR middle school, Mast Way and Moharimet schools. This option would result in a school of nearly 1,400 students
  • Build a new Oyster River High School and move the existing middle school into the current high school.
  • Explore building a new regional high school and move the existing middle school into the existing high school. This option would require school systems willing to work together.

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Oyster River Elementary School Students Participate in Science Fridays

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Oyster River Cooperative School District
SAU No. 5
Superintendent James Morse
36 Coe Drive
Durham, NH 03824

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Oyster River Elementary School Students Participate in Science Fridays   

DURHAM — Throughout March and April, Mast Way and Moharimet elementary schools teamed up with the University of New Hampshire to bring a variety of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) projects to fourth grade students.

Under the guidance of the UNH Lunabotics Team (Lunacats), which works to promote students’ interest in space exploration and in robotics through outreach activities, Oyster River created Science Fridays.

Every Friday, from March 9 to April 13, students gathered at Mast Way from 3:15-5:30 p.m. to use STEM techniques to build a boat, bridge, catapult, robots and magnets, and complete the egg drop challenge.

“I loved the egg drop activity because I got to see designs and how they worked,” said fourth-grade student Gwen Rasmussen. “It was nice to see each group’s design and how it reacted differently to the fall.”

“The last day of Science Friday gave me a new way of thinking about devices and how to use motors,” said fourth-grade student Isaac Williams. “I have gotten new ideas for games to design in the future. The program is a fun way to do science. It inspires kids to be inventors!”

Science Fridays were overseen by Mast Way and Moharimet Technology Integrators Susan Leifer and Sarah Curtin.

“Our goal with this program was to further expose students to fun and practical applications of science, develop their curiosities and potentially pique their interests for a lifetime of learning in STEM fields,” Curtin said. “We want to thank the Lunacats for their help and guidance throughout this process.”

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